So my wife and I decided to make a run for a week for a no-kid Mommy/Daddy getaway in Cozumel. Normally we VRBO, but we had a rough late summer and early fall with a lot going on, so we went with the all-inclusive (drinking) option and opted for the smaller scale Sunscape Sabor resort on the southwest coast of Cozumel.
On final approach across the channel separating mainland Mexico (Playa del Carmen and Cancun) from Cozumel…well, that looks inviting…!
Thanks to my wife hounding the travel agent and perhaps another “incentive”, we ended up with what we agreed was probably one of the best rooms we’ve ever had on vacation (Maui edged it out by a good margin though…)
The view from the patio was just drop-dead gorgeous. I spent just about every sunset out there sipping a beverage and watching the sun dip into the sea…
Yeah…like that…
We got there midday and were in the water off the resort within a couple hours. I hadn’t been to Cozumel for maybe ten years or more, so the changes to the island have been significant since my last visit - and generally not in a good way (as those things go). Some of this has been due to nature - Hurricane Wilma did a number on Cozumel about a decade ago, and other storms have done some damage to the reef system. And, increasing tourism pressure (like ourselves) have also probably taken some toll.
The resort we were staying at wasn’t really known for having great snorkeling right off the resort, but it had the vibe we were looking for (not a high-rise). That said, there were some cool fish and some limited coral just off the beach.
We saw quite a few Yellow Stingrays during our snorkeling at all beaches…
I love the Pink Tip Anemone - and some sort of shrimp perhaps?
As usual, Blue Striped Grunts are everywhere there is cover…
And we came across the occasional Chainlink Moray…
Just to the north of the resort is a large concrete dock with pilings that attract larger fish…
Starfish - the one Marisa is holding is not the one that was on the coral - different starfish and we left him undisturbed…
View of our resort from the limit of where we can snorkel (more on that later…sigh…)
We never had a bad sunset with that kind of view…
The next day we headed over to an old favorite - a place that has remained quintessential “Cozumel” to this day - Corona Beach Bar. No entry fee, nice facilities, no pressure to buy anything, and nice snorkeling with easy access. These guys have been running this place forever and it remains low key, with great food, drinks, and just a great vibe and location.
Still some nice coral although they have roped of sections to protect them from further damage - probably a smart move since 90% of the snorkelers are completely clueless…they stand, stomp, hit their fins on coral…it is super-aggravating to watch…
I like snorkeling. (Is an explanation necessary??)
Corona Beach is one of the areas that has the delineated swimming/snorkeling buoy area that extends out to at least part of the deeper water.
A super frustrating change to Cozumel in the decade since I was last there is that almost the entire west side of the island is marked with buoys that delineate the edge of snorkeling/swimming in front of resorts and the beginning of Mexico Route 1 - which means dozens and dozens of boats roaring up and down the coast just outside of the buoy line. It is absolutely insane. You can’t even reach the deeper water in 90% of the places we snorkeled because the boat traffic hugs the buoys and it would be suicide to venture further even with a dive buoy/flag in tow. Now, the reasons for this are manifold, and make sense except for those of us that can actually swim and are comfortable being quite a bit further offshore. Probable reasons include:
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Protecting people from themselves - weak swimmers, tough currents, and all that.
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Protecting the boat/dive business. This (I think) is the biggest reason. Push the boats up against the shore so that snorkelers and shore divers think twice about venturing outside the buoy line. Make people get on boats to get everywhere.
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Shortest distance between two points is a straight line, and the buoys allow the boats to not go further offshore and face more wind, current, and distance - thus saving time and fuel, and advertising their service.
Anyway - it is really, really frustrating as it make the water near the shore very choppy, you get near constant noise both in the water and at the resorts, and you get severely restricted freedom to swim beyond 50 or 60 yards from shore. It is enough of a restriction and frustration that we (sadly) probably won’t be going back to Cozumel.
At times if felt like there was an actual boat race going. Almost all of these boats are heading to Palancar Reef and Colombia Reef - both great dive sites, marginal snorkel sites, and definitely the cause of most of the boat traffic…
Can you find the fish in the gillie suit?
I know…more anemones - I really dig their texture and colors…
Some barrel type sponges near the deeper part off Corona Beach…
And some nice looking, healthy coral polyps…
Beers are best enjoyed with a view - Corona Beach has great beer, guacamole, and shrimp tacos. It has always been that way, and I pray it shall always be that way…
Back at our resort - each day a group of pelicans would come along and hunt along the shoreline - easy pickings in the clear water with schools of small bait fish…
A Peacock Flounder trying to blend in to the sand…
My Señorita…
The next day (or the next day after that…it was a bit of a blur) we headed down the coast toward the southernmost point - Punta Sur. A fantastic national park that charges admission to enter and has a really nice lighthouse, drive, and beaches. There are also mangrove tours that we skipped.
We received a private, personal tour from one of the Park Rangers who was interesting and full of pretty fun information…although it was a bit like a live broadcast of Coast to Coast with some odd alien-type interjections and curiosities. It was all good though, and we appreciated the tour and saw some thing we otherwise wouldn’t have seen.
View from one of the lighthouse windows…
At the top…!
The road leading into Punta Sur…
Obligatory parrot photograph at the base of the lighthouse…
Our park ranger guide giving us a tour of some of the areas where the Mayans used to live and get water…
We took a nice walk through the jungle with warnings about boars and snakes and crocodiles and stuff…and then did a short hike back up the iron shore (actually could be a real ankle twister and can cut you to ribbons if you aren’t careful…)
Next we drove further into the park to access an absolutely gorgeous beach that had a reef that was surprisingly good. Neither of us had been to visit it in our previous visits to Cozumel, and I think it is probably one of the nicest snorkel sites we’ve found on the island. It is a drift snorkel, you enter, swim pretty far out toward a buoy (there are ZERO boats in this area) and the current sweeps you down the beach at a fair clip. You reach the pin end of the reef marked by a flag, then you have a bit of a swim back toward the beach against a quartering “headwind” current. It is not far, but I can see how people might get freaked out about being so far out and facing a bit of a swim. We actually visited on two days and I think on both days, despite seeing maybe a hundred people total try snorkeling out there, I think only a dozen or so actually swam the full distance to see the actual outlying reef.
A Nurse Shark was there on both days we went out - the theory is that he hangs out in the crevasses of the reef during the day and hunts at night (I guess?)…
The beginning of the reef is rather unspectacular with lots of damage and areas that look like they’ve been scrubbed nearly clear…but then about halfway down the drift, the reef just explodes and it is just fantastic. Visibility was phenomenal both days.
After drifting down the coast, we swam in, then continued to walk further up to the nearest point, which look out toward Colombia and Palancar reefs…
The photographs don’t really translate well the color palette out on the ocean - the blues and teals are just awesome looking (inviting!)…
There are different vendors on the beach that have bars, umbrellas, beach chairs…all with varying levels of value. The food is universally good though…wow…shrimp tacos, guacamole, and I didn’t meet a single habanero sauce that I didn’t love (despite the tears of pain!)…
Marisa didn’t believe me when I told her about the salt water crocodile attacks that had occurred in the area…
Once we were done at Punta Sur, we made the short, 15 minute drive back to our resort and “hung out” at the bar sipping mudslides…
Always pulled toward the ocean though, we invariably ended up back in the water in front of our resort despite the boats and sparse coral. You just never know what you might see…and my wife and I are a match made in heaven since we are both part fish. We were both troubled to see a few Lionfish in and among the coral and debris in front of the resort. These beautiful, but non-native fish need to be eliminated as quickly as they show up as they devastate reef ecosystems.
Seal Team Tequila…
I know I’m skipping around a bit…but on our second day we made a HUGE mistake and actually took the bait on the “free resort money” offer as we were checking in. They take you over to the neighboring resort (which is very nice) and spend two hours trying to sell you some club membership that is a COMPLETE SCAM for 99% of the people that get the pitch. Yes, I’m sure there are some people that can read all the fine print and take full advantage, but I had warning bells going off constantly. We resisted the hard sell and my brain locked into “this is BS” mode and I felt myself getting angry. I was about two seconds from walking out when the third soft-seller tried to wrap up the meeting with a survey that was still a pitch. They dazzle you with numbers on multiple yellow note pads and I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who actually signs something at the end of their pitch (because you are not allowed to take it back to your room for a day or two to mull it over). My advice. Just don’t. It wasn’t worth the two hours away from our vacation. I mean, I guess it saved us $100 or something off our later snorkel tour we took…but I’d rather pay the vendor the full amount and not get pitched to. YMMV.
Each circle on this page represents a ramping up of the BS…
However, the fruits of our enduring the pitch was a (basically) free snorkel tour on one of the aforementioned buoy hugging boats. It was a fun experience, but honestly, Palancar and Colombia reefs are so deep that the are probably more suitable for divers. As experienced and comfortable snorkelers, we found a value in it…and I can free-dive down quite deeply, so I was able to see some things and colors that surface snorkelers wouldn’t.
Our ride…
The tour starts with a stop in the shallow water to get people familiar with their gear if they are borrowing boat gear…
After that, they take you out to Palancar and Columbia reefs…which are deep reefs and the current whips along there at about 2 knots…so you are just along for the ride…
Me going down to photograph…something…
And something else…
Palancar was the only place we actually saw turtles…which was odd because we were used to seeing them everywhere at Half Moon Bay and Akumal, Mexico…
Before we knew it, the snorkeling was over and it was time for the ride back…so we cracked a couple beers…
The next day - we returned to our Old Faithful - Corona Beach because we love the food and people so much. We noticed that a LOT of areas in the recent years have taken to charging just to access the facilities. Understandable in that they were probably getting a lot of squatters that weren’t buying any food or drink…but I wasn’t going to pay $15 per person just go get in the door. So again, the vibe of Cozumel has changed a bit…now it is a lot about monetization, and I don’t blame them, but it IS different than it was.
Snorkeling along the outside buoy line at Corona Beach you get to peer into some deep water (with boats roaring by 50 feet away)…and we saw a huge school of fish with a barracuda just hanging out above them sorta taking in the scene…
Diving deep you get rewarded with some nice coral formations…
…but the shallows on the fringes of Corona Beach and the nearby points are still hiding some really nice coral and fan formations…
The resort (Sunscape Sabor) was really nice. Almost all of our meals were pretty good. The chicken enchiladas with mole sauce were awesome…
Oddly enough though - the resort could not make a decent margarita to save their lives. It defied logic…but we drank them anyway…(the view took the edge off)…
The margaritas were so bad that we had to seek an alternative, so we went with mojitos, which were a fair stand-in, but didn’t have the longevity of a good margarita during a long night…(first world problems eh?)
Hopefully with a drink in hand?
The next day (or the next…hard to keep track) - we headed through town, past the cruise ships, and set our sights on trying to find some sunken boats that were advertised off the iron shore nearby the airport. After driving around a bit, we settled on a nice, low-key bar/restaurant with a reggae theme that had some lockers and access to the area we were looking for.
The area has a few boats running around, although in the early morning that we hit it, the boat traffic was pretty light. A dive flag is advisable, and this area had a very significant current running - enough so that we pondered whether we would be able to make it back to our put in location. We first came across the large concrete blocks that were described in the directions to the wreck…
We had good directions on where the wrecks were, but I was a bit nervous when we got out past the listed landmarks and we still hadn’t spotted it. I was debating whether to turn back, but we drifted a bit down current and with the good visibility finally laid eyes on the wreck…
The current, and the proposition of additional boat traffic, didn’t encourage dawdling, so we snapped some pics, then took up a bearing of 11 o’clock off the bow of the first boat to find the second one per the description…
After just a minute or two of finning our way downcurrent, we spotted the second boat…
We headed back cross-current using about all our horsepower for the first ten minutes, then the current started to relent a bit toward shore, so we made it back to our put-in…
Beer at 10AM? Sure…it’s 5 o’clock in Ukraine or something right?
Not wanting to do battle with the cruise ship visitor traffic, we took the island transversal road that runs across the island east/west to go around the urban area and headed for the rugged east coast of Cozumel. It was a fun drive through the authentic locals neighborhoods and across the island…with the road dead-ending up against the north/south highway that runs on east side of the island, loops around to the south and up the west side. Once there, we stopped a few times to check out the pounding surf and beach areas, which are popular with sea turtle that nest in the sands above the high tide line.
If you look closely, you can see the little tracks of just hatched baby turtle fins that mark their progress across the sand toward the sea…
The iron shore is ridiculously brutal though, with all kinds of nooks and crannies that can capture and trap a baby sea turtle. We found this poor fellow in a hollow in the iron shore, a victim of being caught in an inescapable nook and the brutal sun…
We returned to Sunscape and did what we always did…grabbed some drinks, donned fins in the late afternoon, and headed back into the water…
The next day we headed UP the coast on the rugged east side and found a pretty beat up bar/restaurant that was just the type of dive we were looking for. Short on looks, but long on character and low key owners and workers. We hit the water before the place opened, but were hoping we’d be able to grab some beers and brunch on our return. This side of the island is characterized by rougher surf, generally poorer visibility, and some pretty intense currents that bear watching carefully since there are fewer in/out access areas along the iron shore.
We were initially lured into the water by the sight of some dolphins that were popping up occasionally offshore. While I was pretty sure I heard some clicks from them, we never did get to see them unfortunately. The visibility started off terrible, but quickly improved and we were rewarded with some pretty good coral formations. I was very cognizant of the current though because the prevailing current might swirl around the point of the bay and tend to trick you with regards to direction. Keeping two cross bearings on the restaurant and a jetty let me keep track of drift and I was pretty confident in our ability to make it back. That said, I’d call it an advanced snorkel spot based on the distance we had to swim (probably 15 minutes out?) and the very real possibility of getting caught out in a current that would have you in an area with no exit readily available (and no boats to pluck you out)…
Marisa surfing in on a small set that rolled through just as she was exiting…
We had the beach all to ourselves…
In keeping with the theme of trying to patronize all of the places we visited, we ordered some beers and a spread of pico de gallo, guacamole, and some of the hottest habenero sauce I’ve had…Bartender…I’m gonna need another beer to put out these flames!
An enterprising mariachi band hit us up and brought Marisa to tears with a rendition of one of her late Grandma’s favorite Mexican songs…
Another beautiful sunset reflected in our patio door…
Did I mention I love snorkeling?
Each night at the resort was wonderful. We alternated between the “Italian” restaurant (pizza and lasagna), the Mexican restaurant (El Patio), and we pretty much skipped the buffet. The margaritas remained universally awful, so we took to procuring bottles of wine through a connection we fostered.
Lining up for another awful margarita?
The buffet area was really nice, although we pretty much only visited it for the fantastic breakfast spread. I mean, I actually looked forward to getting up each morning because of that breakfast…
The only place where we could receive the free WiFi was the hotel lobby, which meant our calls and texts to home would only go for the very few minutes we were there each night passing through…
The resort really was superb…
Spotted this critter on the way back from breakfast one morning…
And though we missed most of the events and shows, we did happen to catch the Fire Show…which, I have to say, was extremely impressive and probably one of the coolest shows I’ve seen at one of these resorts.
Waiting for a table at El Patio…
The week flew by…and on our last full day we decided to head back to Punta Sur just because it offered so much with regards to snorkeling, food, and a beautiful beach. The only drawback is they make you wear one of those ridiculous flotation vests, which, regardless of safety, means I can’t get great photos of my wife’s bikini top. It seems like a lose-lose proposition for everyone involved if I’m to be honest. 
It had rained the night before, and our last full day was a bit spotty on the weather, with some significant storm clouds brewing, but we considered ourselves lucky to have had nearly perfect weather the entire week.
Despite the rain, the water quality seemed the best of the entire week…with an easy 100’+ visibility in crystal clear waters. This was the point that almost all snorkelers seemed to turn around…the vast blue open before you got to the actual reef another five or so minutes of swimming further…
The beginning of the reef, as I mentioned, is pretty beat up and off-putting…but stick with it down-current…
This buoy signals the start of the reef…
Guardian of the reef…
After a short swim, the reef explodes into a riot of fans…
And all manner of fish…
This reef was pretty much the only place we saw both a shark and Southern Stingrays - to our great disappointment, we never did see any Eagle Rays…
Southern Stingray buried in the sand…you don’t want to swim over him without seeing him first…
…because they positively explode out of the sand…
We spotted some of the most gorgeous shells at Punta Sur…but all were inhabited and part of the ecosystem, so we left them where we found them…
Flounder and starfish…
The tail end of the reef tapers out and the current starts sweeping out to sea, so take heed of the pin-end flag and start your swim to shore from here. It isn’t a good idea to try to swim back to the start…just go cross current and wash up on the beach at the other end of the bay and walk back rather than struggle against the current…
Storm rolling in…!
Fish, sea-biscuit, starfish…all the usual suspects…
Mission accomplished…!
Another round of beer and food - that cut up habenero on the right side actually made me weep, but I kept shoving it in my mouth…it was so good…!
A rainy last evening…sad to go home, but excited to go see our little boy…!
A great vacation - lots of wonderful memories…and a good getaway for some quality husband/wife time.
